Sigma Alpha Iota

14 Winter 2022 • sai-national.org Cposers Minuetta Kessler A Forgotten Composer By Dr. Adrienne Wiley M inuetta Kessler, Honorary Member of Sigma Alpha Iota and a member of the SAI Composers Bureau, is a name that is probably long forgotten. She was a fine pianist and a dedicated piano teacher to her young students. She wrote a significant amount of piano repertoire, mostly educational music, and music for other genres and instruments. I came across her name not long ago and decided that it was important to follow up on her and her music. Background Background I am a pianist, and during my doctoral program I sustained an injury to my right hand and arm due to incorrect over-practice. No pianist really wants to admit to having tendonitis; I had to make the best of the situation possible, and thus, embarked on learning and performing piano works for the le hand alone. Since that time, I have continued to research, practice, and perform works for the le hand. is genre is fascinating to me, and I continue to find such a wealth of wonderful music to play! It was by no accident that, when I had to decide what to research on my last sabbatical, that I decided to continue my efforts in finding more one-handed piano music, but this time by WOMEN composers. ere is a wealth of one-handed literature written by male composers, but not as much by women composers. is was the opportunity for me to explore a genre that I am truly invested in — and it was, and continues to be, enlightening in all respects. us, I came across the name of Minuetta Kessler and her piece Evocation for Le Hand Alone. is piece is not a standard in the le hand repertoire, but it is an extraordinary example of compositionally sound writing for the le hand alone and bears study and practice. About the composer About the composer Minuetta was born in Russia in 1914. Her family moved to Canada, where she would later become a naturalized Canadian citizen. Her mother was a tutor for children and her father was a lawyer. Labeled a child prodigy by the age of five, she performed her own works at this tender age, and then went on to study formally with Gladys Egbert in Calgary, and Ernest Hutcheson and Ania Dorfmann at the Juilliard School, New York. While at Juilliard she also studied composition with Ivan Langstroth. Aer she received her degree, she stayed on for post-graduate studies and taught piano there until 1936. While at Juilliard, she met her first husband, Ernest Borek, and they had one son. She made her Town Hall debut in 1945 and went on to perform over 50 solo concerts. She collaborated with the Boston Civic Symphony and the Boston Pops. In addition, she would continue to perform with orchestras across Canada and in the Boston area. She was noted for her formidable technique, musicianship, and sensitivity to and for "color" in her playing. Kessler divorced her first husband in 1948 and eventually moved to Boston in 1952; she then moved to Belmont with her second Kessler was initiated Kessler was initiated as an SAI Honorary as an SAI Honorary Member in 1979. Member in 1979.

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